Astros to miss Pence’s winning mentality

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MILWAUKEE — Sitting at his locker before what would be his final game with the Astros, right fielder Hunter Pence was approached by a nervous reporter trying to make small talk at a time of year when no talks are small.

“Nervous days?”

“These are great days,” said Pence, who was traded hours later to the Philadelphia Phillies for four minor league prospects. “We’ve won two in a row.”

That, beyond everything else, including the stats, the intense attitude and the way he ingratiated himself to Houston, was what Pence meant to the Astros.

Winning mattered more to him than anything else, and it showed in the way he spoke and conducted himself.

“It’s a shame I wasn’t able to produce more playoff moments in the big leagues, but hopefully it all works out,” Pence, 28, said. “The realization that this day was going to come kind of hit me yesterday, and now it’s a reality and I think it’s kind of a win-win. I think the Astros are going to get some great players. It’s a new chapter for them and a new chapter for me.”

The chapter that ended with an 0-for-1 night at Miller Park on Friday night began with his debut on April 28, 2007 — a significant date in that it put off free agency another year and ultimately gave Pence his Super 2 status that made him so expensive for the two years the Astros are passing off to the Phillies.

Pence was a hit from the start, carrying an average in the .340s and .350s through most of May and eventually getting to the fringes of a heated Rookie of the Year race between Ryan Braun and Troy Tulowitzki.

Pence was named to a pair of All-Star teams — in 2009 and again this year when he had a hit and an outfield assist in the game. His performance was one of the few bright spots in the Astros’ season, which has long been irrelevant from a playoff standpoint.

His jersey has been ubiquitous at Minute Maid Park, where few jerseys of current players are spotted at all among fans attending games.

Or to hear it put in a simpler fashion, listen to Drayton McLane, who signed off on Friday’s deal along with new owner Jim Crane, who had been consulted.

“He’s, over the last few years, the single most important player in our franchise,” McLane said.

When that run ended abruptly with Pence being taken out of Friday’s game in the fifth inning, Pence shared hugs with his teammates and his manager, who said the two had been prepared for the moment for a couple of days.

Pence will be missed on the field and not just for his .290 average and remarkable consistency as the trade ensures that in all three full years spent with the Astros he hit exactly 25 home runs.

“It was a great honor to play with him,” said center fielder Michael Bourn, who played one long toss over most nights since 2008. “He was a great teammate, and Philly’s getting a first-class player.”

Pence will join a team that wants him and won a bidding war against rival Atlanta and others to acquire the 28-year-old with two years left under team control. He willl take less of a starring role in that lineup, which also includes Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Shane Victorino and Jimmy Rollins.

But all Pence can see is the win-loss record.

“I’m on board with a team that’s got the best record in baseball and unbelievable talent, so it’s a wonderful thing for everybody I hope,” Pence said.